Markets - Commercial

Driven by budgetary concerns due to the rising costs for fossil fuels and a changing public policy embracing renewable energy, commercial pellets will begin to emerge as a viable fuel for combined heat and power solutions.

WOODSTONE will provide the support necessary to allow a public administrator or business owner to replace their fossil fuel burning heat appliance, or combined heat and power co-generation facility, over to one that leverages pellets as a heat and energy fuel source.

 

 

The following market forces will support the developing commercial market for wood pellets:

Wood Pellet Supply

Until now, the supply of wood pellets could not support strong demand on a commercial scale. Pellets are now being produced on increasingly larger scale with new production projects being announced at a steady pace.

Resources

Sourcing the skills and wood pellet boilers for converting a fossil fuel combined heat and power co-generation facility, to one that burns pellets, has proven to be difficult and cost prohibitive. This fact is now changing as commercial pellet boilers and best practices are being brought over from Europe.

Large commercial applications for wood pellets will be driven by demand from both the private and public sectors. Educational institutions, large healthcare facilities and public administrations have driven the market in Europe, a similar trend will materialize in the US.

Carbon Reduction

Large commercial applications for wood pellets will be driven by education, healthcare and public administrations concerned with reducing their infrastructure's carbon footprint. For instance, nearly 500 college presidents have signed The American College & University Presidents Climate Commitment, "a high-visibility effort to address global warming by garnering institutional commitments to neutralize greenhouse gas emissions, and to accelerate the research and educational efforts of higher education to equip society to re-stabilize the earth’s climate."

A state college with approximately 10,000 students and faculty may consume 10,000 tons of pellets for combined heat and power purposes. This amount of pellets will produce 170 billion Btu and at the same time reduce their carbon footprint by 27,000,000 lbs by not burning fuel oil.